Stamped metal vehicle wheel



April 10, 1951 H. J. HORN 8,

swarm: METAL VEHICLE wnsm.

Filed June 18, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG.

- INVENTOR. .HARRY J. HORN ATTORNFYS H. J. HORN STAMPED METAL VEHICLE WHEEL April 10, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 18, 1948 UINVENTOR.

HARRY xwim AT TORN EYJT Patented Apr. 10, 1951 STAMPED METAL VEHICLE WHEEL Harry J. Horn, Lansing, Mich, assignor to Motor Wheel Corporation, Lansing, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application June 18, 1948, Serial No. 33,778

Claims.

This invention relates to stamped metal vehicle wheels which are demountable and which can be mounted either singly or dual.

The vehicle wheelpresent used either singly or dual for heavy duty such as on trucks is either a forging or 9. rolled form disc wherein the bolting on flange is a flat annular member thicker than the body part of the disc which is attached to the rim of the wheel. In the vehicle wheel presently used it is necessary to make the bolting on flange considerably thicker than the body part of the disc in order to obtain the strength necessary for such heavy duty wheel. I r I The present invention contemplates a stamped or pressed disc type metal vehicle wheel wherein the disc is of uniform thickness throughout both the bolting on flange and the body part of the disc which attaches to the wheel rim.

In my stamped metal wheel, the thickness of which is considerably less than that of the present forged or rolled formed disc wheel, I obtain the strength necessary in the bolting on flange by stampin 'this flange so that it has an irregular contour which is not flat. By thus forming the bolting on flange in my wheel the strength of the flange is increased due to the fact that the load'stresses are properly distributed. I also arrange the bolting on flange of my wheel so that when my wheels are mounted dual the bolting on flanges are pre-loaded or flexed when thewheel bolts orcap screws are turned tightly into place thereby providing a very advantageous mounting condition. y

Fig. 1 is afragmentary radial section showing my dual wheel assembly secured to the wheel hub.,.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary'elevational view showing the outer or convex side of the bolting on flange of my wheel.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevational View showing the inner or concave side of the bolting on flange of my wheel.

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are cross sections through the boltin on flange of thewheel along the lines 4-4, 5-5, and 6-6 of Figs. Z'and 3 when the wheels are mounted dual. 7

In Fig. 1 of the drawings there is shown a dual wheel assembly consisting of a hub l, brake drum 2, wheel bodies 3 and 4 which are identical and of the dished disc type, and rims 5 and 6. The wheel bodies 3 and 4 are secured to the hub flange l by bolts 8, which pass through openings 9 in the hub flange, and nuts ID, or in any other suitable conventional manner such,

for example, a by means of cap screws each having a head of the same configuration as the nut l0 and screwed into the hub flange. The two wheels shown mounted on hub I in Fig. 1 are identical, each wheel being in reverse position with respect to the other.

The bolting on flange of my wheel will be generally designated H and is shown in detail in Figs. 2 to 6.

The wheel is provided with a central opening for reception of the hub I and the bolting on flange is provided around its inner circumference with a circumferential bead or seat l2. The circumferentially spaced bolt holes are designated I3 and are coplanar. Each bolt hole on the convex face of the wheel, Fig. 2 is surrounded by a circular embossment M. The convex face of the bolting on flange, as viewed in Fig. 2, is provided with an integral circumferential embossment which, for purposes of description, can be referred to by its component parts; namely, embossment 14 extending com pletely about each hole l3, interconnecting embossment l5 which merges at each end with embossments l4 and at its central portion merges with embossment H; which flares radially outwardly from embossment portion l5 and merges into the angular portion I l of the wheel body as at [8.

As shown in Fig. 2, the convex faces of embossments I4, I5 and it are shown. The high point of embossment i4 is around circumference l9'of each opening [3. .The highest point of each embossment l5 extends along its median circumferential line and the highest point of embossment portion it extends alon its median radial line. The highest points of all these embossment portions l4, I5 and I6 are in the same plane. The high point of embossment portion 15 is designatedZil, Fig. 4, and the high point of embossment portion I5 is along the line 2|, Fig. 6. As viewed in Fig. 2, the depressed areas in bolting on flange II will be in head [2 and the generally arch shaped area 22 extending about the outer half circumference of each opening I3.

Now referring to Fig. 3 where the bolting on flange is viewed from the concave side of the Wheel, embossment portions I4, I5 and [6 now show up as depressions and the high areas are constituted by the convex face of bead [2 which extends around the central opening in the Wheel body and the arch shaped embossment 22. Thus, the bearing surfaces of the bolting on flange is 3 constituted by the high areas-22;andthe;-median circumferential line 23 of head! 2, Fig. 5.

When the wheels are mounted in dualrelation, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4 to 6, the wheel body 3 is reversed in relation to the wheel bod 4. As shown in Figs. 4 and 6, the nuts l hav not been drawn tight and therefore there is a clearance 25 between bead I2 and the hub flange 1. Referring to Fig. 5, it will be noted that on the concave side of th wheel the high area of bead i2 bears against the hub flange E. In the area of line 1- 3, the concave face of the inner wheel bearsagainst hub flange 7 throughout the high facial area of embcssment 22 and the same is true in the area about opening i3 along the line 5- -5. The inner wheel 4 along the area of line 6-6 does not bear against the hub flange "1' because the concave'side of embossments l8 face the hub flange andeach embossment i6 is flanked on each side "by"high embossments 22. The outer and inner wheels 3 and l in the area or line A-fibear against each other-'along'the high areas 26 of embossed portions and aresp'ac'ed from each other between embossmentsfii but, assho'wn in Fig. 6, the embos'sments16 abut each other between holes {3 and between spacedembossments 22. In the area or line5-'"5,as shown in Fig. 5, the circumferential high portions E9 of embossments i l about openings l5 contact or bear against each other. Further, as shown in 5, when the nuts iii are drawn down, the bolting on flange of the inner wheel t is flexed "around embossment 22 and clearance 25 is taken up 'andsimultaneously the bolting'on flange cf the outer wheel'3 also flexes about thebearing point'between embossments ES to thus place thebolting on'flange of the outer wheel instressed condition. Thus, the bolting on flanges of both the inner and outer Wheels are pre-loaded which is highly desirable from the standpoint of taking upside thrusts on the wheel bodies in-'actual'operation. Due to this pre-loadingan-ysid'e 'stresses'or strains, that is, stresses or strains in the "axial direction of the wheel body, ar distributedov'e'r the continuous circumferential portion of the wheel body along the area of contactbetween the-bolting'cn flange of the inner w'heel'and the hub flange and similar stresses on the outer wheel'body 3 are distributed along the entire area of contact at the junction of the wheel body portion and the bolting on flange and thus in both wheels these side stresses or strains are not concentrated in the areas of contact between the nuts 5 Sand the wheel body.

Fromthe above it will be noted that the bolting on flange has an embossment extending continuously about the central wheel opening and projecting axially in one direction; namely, toward the reader as viewed in Fig. 2, which consists of the ring-like embossments about holes 53, the arc embossments [5 extending between embossments I4 and concentric with the center of the wheel and the radially outwardly projecting flared portions 16. The bolting on flange of the wheel also has embossments projecting in the axially opposite direction, that is, toward the reader as viewed in Fig. '3, and these embossments comprise the arch shaped embossments 22 positioned radially outwardlyofithe embossments I l and the circular embossment or bead 12 extending about the circumference of the central wheel opening and inwardly of the embossed portions 14 and I5.

I claim:

1. A stamped metal vehicle wheel comprising a wheel body having an integral bolting on flange provided with a plurality "of circumferentially spaced holes located in a planar zone of said bolting on flange, said bolting on flange having a central opening adapted to receive a hub, said bolting; on flange having a continuous embossment extendingabout the circumference of said central opening and projecting axially in one direction, said embossment comprising the following integrated portions; namely, ring-like portions extending completely about each of said holes, are portiens concentric with the center of the wheel body and joining said ring-like portions and portions "extending radially outwardly of said are substantially the radially outer half circumference of each of said ring-like embossed portions:

and a bead embossment extending about the central opening and positioned between the central.

opening and the said ring-like and are portions of the radially opposite projecting embossment.

2. The combination claimed in claim 1 wherein:

the bolting on flange is positioned generally in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the wheel and. the remainder of the wheel body is generally,"

convex.

3. The combination claimed in claim 2 wherein:

the wheel hody is of substantially uniform thickness.

14. The combination claimed in claim '3 wherein the said embossed portions extending radially outwardly of saidarc portions intermediate the.-

ring-like'portions are flared radially outwardly.

5. The combination'claimed in claim {1 wherein said radially flared'em'bossed portions extend into and merge with the convex portion of said wheel.

body.

HARRY J. HORN REFERENCES CITED The followingreferences are of record in thefile of this patent:

- UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date Re. 21,960 Stough Nov. 25,1941 2,130,392 Horn Sept. 20, 1933 2,317,311 Stough Apr. 20, 1943: 2,407,749 Sinclair Sept. 17, 1946 

